Northern Exposure

Northern Exposure

In December 2005, while other families in Bayfield, Wisconsin, trimmed trees and wrapped gifts, Mark and Jenny Bretheim donned dust masks to sand the wainscoting in their living room. A year into renovating their 1879 home, the pair still had a long way to go. "It was a pretty austere setting that Christmas," Mark admits. "We sat in folding chairs, sipped Champagne, and imagined what our house could become."

In this photo: Mark's company, Cose Nuove, imports the Finnish birch and felt ornaments that trim the tree. The couple lopped off the redwood base of a dining table to make this coffee table. The walls are painted White Dove by Benjamin Moore.

Bright idea: A ring of chairs around a coffee table encourages conversation better than the conventional sofa setup.

Bold and Bright

Bold and Bright

The fantasy of a weekend escape from Minneapolis had actually taken root two years earlier, when Jenny and Mark attended a niece's wedding in the tiny town on Lake Superior. "We noticed a few 'For Sale' signs and asked each other, 'What if?'" says Mark. The couple, both of Norwegian descent, were drawn to the clean lines of this particular farmhouse—never mind the peeling linoleum and crumbling plaster. "The basement was full of trash, from floor to ceiling," Jenny recalls. "But we knew that underneath was a darling house."

In this photo: The Bretheims purchased the rug and demilune table at Ikea. A local crafter made the pine wreath. The door is painted Red by Benjamin Moore.